Machine for turning in edges of high-grade leather goods



Imis, 192er M. KPPE f 1,711,929 v MACHINE FOR TRNING IN EDGES OE HIGH GRADE LEATHER GOODS` M. KPPE '1,717,939' ucunm son TURNING INrEDGEsoF HIGH GRADE-LEATHER Goov's June 18, 1929.

2 sneetsLsnm 2 Filed Jun 11, 1927 Patented .lune 18, 1929.

UNITED STATES MAX KPPE, OF DRESDEN-GRUNA, GERMANY.

IVIILCHINE FOR TURNING IN EDG-ES 0F HIGH-GRADE LEATHER GOODS.

Application filed June 11, 1927, Serial No. 198,062, and in Germany January 30, 1926.

The invention relates to a contrivance for turning' in edges of regular Width when manufacturing high grade leather goods, i. e. wallets, pocketbooks, bill-folds and other goods of the portfolio industry. In the case of boots, shoes and other goods where the turned-in edge is not visible, it is not so important that the latter be absolutely regular, and the leather used in this branch of industry is of such strength and permanency of form, that when the edges are skived and turned in, the Whole leather piece retains the shape it had after having been cut out.

On the other hand, the portfolio industry employs a very soft, supple leather, to which starch paste is commonly applied in order to stiften the leather. Before turning-in the edges, an adhesive is applied, which, however, again softens the leather to a certain degree. All these preparatory operations, especially the skiving of the leather repeatedly alter the shape of the cut-out piece, and it is necessary to trim it to the former width.

Up 'to now, the edges of such mentioned leather goods have been generally turned in by hand, remaining visible on the lined inner side of the work-piece. For this purpose a metal copy was used, the overstretched irregular' leather edge being subsequently trimmed oit' with a knife by hand. In order to remove the metal copy, the edges had to be first raised and then pressed down again. 1n curvedy parts, a great deal depended on the skill of the workman. Even if it had been possible to avoid cutting into the leather in concave parts, or, owing to compression, to avoid folds of the leather in convex parts, onecould not help lifting the turned edges for the purpose of removing the metal copy and pressing them down again, thereby perhaps slightly damaging the edge. The wellknown bending machines generally employed in the leather industry could not satisfy the requirements mentioned here and were there fore not used.

ln order to attain edges of regular Width and of the kind mentioned, the invention proposes an improved machine wherein cooperating drums and smoothing iingers are employed to gradually turn and press an edge of the material and wherein cutting means are provided. to trim the edge after it is turnedh For the purpose of avoiding folds in curved parts, the turned-in leather edge resting on a Well-known rotating drum acting as a support, is smoothed by means of smoothing fingers which, being close to each other and rotating with the drum, come into action one after another, passing over the leather in a direction from creasing line to the free edge. Simultaneously or immediately after the smoothing action, the extreme outer edge of the leather passes on to a rotating support where it is trimmed by a circular cutter.

The smoothing lingers, protected by a case and fitted round the entire circumference of a kind of drum are,.by means of a cam which may be put out of action, caused to move down till they touch the turned leather edge. I-lereupon, influenced by a spring, they slide over the turned edge of the leather, exerting a slight resilient pressure, and according to the curve of the edge, stretching or compressing (staving) (if necessary both) the skived edge.

The smoothing iingers Which are no longer in control of the cam are kept back or led back in an upright position b-y means of springs.

The position in which the smoothing fingers exert just the right pressure on the rim is determined beforehand, and when work ing leather of greater thickness, it is consequently necessary to decrease the diameter of the supporting drum. This is made possible by tting on the drum a number of flat rings, one above the other. Adjustment in axial direction is, however, also necessary according to the width oft-he turned-in edge. Similar adjustment is also of advantage for the circular cutter, the counter-cutter, and therefore also for the grinding mechanism. A flange 12 or in place of this an upright roller 12il serves as a support to the edge.

For the purpose of employing this machine for simultaneously bending and trimming edgings for rolling edges thinner, or for rolling down closing seams, operations which have hitherto been effected by hand, a roller, Well-known in bending machines, is here also provided. Tt is xed, together with the cam, on a reversible shaft so that either the smoothing fingers or the roller can be put out of action.

A contrivance as proposed by the invention can also be employed with advantage as an edging machine in other branches of they leather industry.

In order to make the object of this invention quite clear, l have drawn a diagram of this machine as it may be constructed, and in thc following describe the way it works. iirrows indicate direction of movement.

Fig. 1 is a side view of the machine.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal section through the machine on the line al-o of Fig.. 3.

Fig. 3 Fig. 2.

.Fig 4 shows the smoothing fingers alone, but out of action, because the cam has been swung back. The pressure roller is .in working position.

Fig. 5 shows part of the circumference of the drum with smoothing fingers in evolution together with the piece of work, the cutting device being removed.

1 is the frame of the machine with the driving shaft 2 and the driving pulley 3. On the shaft 2 the partly cone-shaped drum 4 is fixed, bearing at its circumference the smoothing fingers 5'. By means of pivots 6, the fingers, lying closely side by side, (Fig. 4) are fitted to levers or arms 7 and are individnally kept in an upright position by springs 8. 9 are further springs which. lie against the rear broad face o of the haeltward extension of the smoothing` fingers 5 as soon as these are put into action. l() is a compound drum serving as a support for the work-piece, the diameter of which may he altered according to the thickness of the leather by means of rings 11 which fit over one another. This compound drum l() has a flange 12 in order to prevent the rings and. the leather from slipping off the drum. An adjusting fork 14 moved by rack and pin ion 15 fits into the hub 13 of the drum 10, and serves to move the drinn in axial direi tion on the shaft 2 according to the width of the edge to be turnedV in.

@n the shaft 16, which extends through the whole machine, a double lever 17 is fitted, bearing at its one end an ascending ani (guide) 18. and at its other end an elastic lever 19 with a pr' sure roll 20. rl`hc adjustment of the sha... is effected by the hand-wheeel 1G, which is fixed on the end of the shaft 16. If the lever 17 is lnoughtin to the position shown in Fig. 2 the cam 13 exerts pressure on the spring 9 and therefore indirect-ly also on the smoiithing fingers 5, which thereupon progressively move in a forward direction (ligs. 3 and 5) as the drum 4 is rotated. Uwingto springs 9 the pressure exerted by the smoothing fingers on the leather is not absolutely firm, but somewhat of a yielding nature.

immediately after the cam has passed, the spring S causes each smoothing finger to Mc quickly move back to normal position and is a section on the line c d of the spring 9 releases the rear face 5a of the smoothingr finger7 so that the turned-in edge cannot be accidentally bent back.

If, however, lever 17 is brought into the position indicated in Fig. 4, the smoothing fingers remain out of action in their normal position. In place, the roller 2O is put into working position on the drum 10.

The shaft 2 has a portion square in crosssection and on this portion there is a bevel pinion 21 with a slee-ve 22, movable in axial direction. Into the sleeve fits a lever 23 which on the upper side has the form of a rack 24, sliding along a guide plate 25.

On shafts 2G and 27 are fixed themeshing gears 29 and 28. Gear 29 engages rack 24. Shaft 27 and gear 23 can be adjusted by a hand-wheel 30. Beams 31 pass through the machine as a guide for the movable bleek 32 which carries the bearing for the shaft i 'i The block 32 has teeth 34 which engage the gear 28.

On the lower squared end of the shaft 33 Yis fixed an adjustable gear 34 engaging the bevel pinion 21. it the upper end of the shaft the circular cutter 3G and a bevel gear 37 are fixed. The circular cutter 3G always cooperates with the counter-cutter 3S on the shaft 39. rlhe latter is hollow and of square section 4() (Fig. 2). lnto this hollow space fits the square end of the shaft 41, carrying a bevel gear 42 meshing with gear 37. Shaft 39 may be adjusted relative to 4l and fixed in any certain position (not shown), and is placed in the bearing 43 in the arm rllhe latter has a guide piece 45 fixed in the grooves 4G of the machine frame lL. The relative position can be adjusted from outside and has not been specially illustrated in Fig. 2. In this way, the arm 44 with the bearing 43 on the shaft 39 can be moved in the direction of the arrow 47. Near to the bearing 43 there is a stripping device 4S which removes any small leather pieces, ete., adhering to the counter-cutter 3S.

The circular cutter 3G can be continuously or intermittently ground by a grinding mechanism 49. This mechanism is, by means of the adjusting contrivances 50 and 5l., fitted in the machine and adjusted in different directions. The grinding mechanism consists of the following parts: pulley 52, belt 53, pulley 54 shaft 55 with pulley 56, belt 57 and pulley o8, shaft 59, pulley 60, belt (l1 and pulley 62. 49 is the grinding disc. 63 is one of the usual adhesive devices and 64 the leather piece to be turned in.

It has been found to be of advantage to fix a counter-guide G5 which I.guides the edge (34 before the smoothing fingers engage it. Adhesive has already been applied to the edge, and therefore this guiding contrivance does not hinder the piece of work 64 in any way. his cont-rivance is also adjustable.

The drum and the smoothing fingers lie in a protecting case 6G. The smoothing fingers pass out through openings 67. An aperture -GS is provided through which the cam 1S projects into the case (3G when the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 2.

Instead of the flange l2 (Fig. l) of the drum l() the roller l2n (Fig. 4:) can be used, as already mentioned. This roller can also be positively driven by teeth on the drum 10. By means of this roller 12a, it is very easy to manage concave curved parts. For this purpose, a canal (39 leads round the encased smoothing fingers, in which liesthe piece of work. In order to remove the counter-cutter 38 when it is desired to change the circular cutter or the rings ll, I have found it to be of advantage to fit hinges 7() and 7l, allowing the front parts la and lb of the case to be swung open.

In Fig. 5 it will be easily seen that the edge Gi of the leather piece Gli has, by means of a bending device (not shown) been lightly bent over. lhe smoothingr fingers on the drum t gradually bend the edge sharply and press same down. Immediately after, the irregular extreme edge GLP) of the leather on the support 39 is trimmed by the circular cutter 3G.

Themachine works as follows:

The skived and marked piece of leather is lead through the adhesive mechanism 63, from whence it passes a well-known preliminary bending device and on to the upper ring ll of the drum l0. Now the smoothing fingers guided by a cam 18 come down on the part of the turned-in leather edge nearest the iiange l2 or the roller l2 (Fig. 4). They then slide toward the free edge of the leather, the pressure exerted by the springs 9 gradually increasing. The somewhat overstretched extreme edge of the leather is bent upward and reaches the rotating countercutter 38. Here the edge is trimmed by the circular cutter 3G. As soon as each smoothing linger reaches a position far forward, it slips off the cam and, owing to spring 8, restores to normal. It is now only necessary to press the turned-in edge firmly down with paper. The edge will be found perfect and no further operation is necessary.

If it is desired to manufacture edging, to roll a skived edge thinner, or to roll down a closing seam, then it is only necessary to turn the shaft 1G by means of the hand-wheel 1G (Fig. 4) in order to put the smoothing fingers out of action and to place the roller in working position. The width of the turned in edge and the width of the trimming can be regulated by moving the compound drum on the shaft 2 in axial direction by means of the regulating device l5. rFhe same may be stated for the adjustment of the diameter of the drum by the rings ll, according to thickness of leather. The manner of operation of the other parts of thermachine is the same as previously described.

It is to be understood that the invent-ion is illustrated only by way of one example and that the scope of the invention is limited only by the claims hereunto appended.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a machine of the class described, a rotating drum forming a support for the material to be turned, a. second drum rotating with the first named drum, smoothing fingers circumferentially arranged about said second drum and operable to gradually turn and press an edge of said material, a cam for operating said fingers, and cooperating cutting elements for trimming said edge after it is turned.

2. In a machine of the class described, a rotating drum forming a support for the material to be turned, a second drum rotating with the first named drum, smoothing fingers circumferentially arranged about said second drum and operable to gradually turn and press an edge of said material, a cam for operating said fingers, a circular rotating cutter, and a counter-'cutter coopera-ting with said rotating cutter to trim said edge and act as a supportfor ythe same.

3. A machine in accordance with claim l, wherein an adhesive-applying mechanism is provided through which the material is fed prior to its engagement with the first named' drum.

4. A machine in accordance with claim l, characterized by movable arms carried by said second drum and to which said fingers are pivoted, and springs engaged with said fingers to exert a yielding pressure thereagainst.

5. A machine in accordance with claim l, characterized by movable arms carried by said second drum and to which said. fingers are pivoted, springs engaged with said fingers to ergert ayielding pressure thereagainst, and other springs to restore said fingers to normal position when the latter are disengaged from said cam.

6. A machine in accordance with claim 1, characterized by an adjustable shaft on which said cam is fixed, an arm supported by said shaft, and a roller carried by said arm and cooperating with the first named drum.

7. A machine in accordance with claim l, wherein said first named drum is provided with a plurality of rings to permit of varying the diameter of the drum.

8. A machine in accordance with claim l, wherein said first named drum is provided with a plurality of rings to permit of Varying the diameter of the drum, and a flange on said first named drum to prevent disengagement of the material therefrom.

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9. A machine in accordance with claim l, wherein said lirst named drum is provided with a plurality of rings to permit ot' varying the diameter of the drum, a flange on said' first named drum to prevent disengagement of the material therefrom, and aroller associated with said first named drum to retain the material thereon While being turned.

l0. In a machine of the class described, a rotatingdrum forming a support for the material to be turned, a shaft on which said drum is mounted, means to adjust said drum axially of said shaft, a second drum rotating with the first named drum, smoothing fingers circumferentially arranged about said second drum and operable to gradually turn and press an edge of said material, a cam for operating said fingers, and cooperating cutting elements for trimming said edge after it is turned.

ll. In a machine of the class described, a rotating drum forming a support for the material to be turned, a second drum rotating With the first named drum, smoothing lingers .circumferentially arranged about said second drum and operable to gradually turn and press an edge ot said material, a

cam for operating saidv lingers, a` circular rotating cutter, a counter-cutter cooperating with said rotating cutter to trim said et and act as a support for the same, and a stripper device for removing trimmings from said counter-cutter.

12. In a machine of the class described, a rotating drum forming a support for the material to be turned, a second drum rotating With the lirst named drum, smoothing fingers circumferentially arranged about said second drinn and operable to gradually turn and press an edge of said material, a cam for operating said fingers, cooperating cutting elements for trimming)` said edge after it is turned, and a casing for said fingers having an opening therein through Which said cam projects.

13. A machine in accordance with claim 1, wherein said iirst named drum is provided ivitli a plurality of rings to permit of varying the diameter of the drum, and wherein a casing is provided for the entire mechanism and formed with hinged closure members permitting access to said cutting elements and rings.

14. In a machine of the class described, a rotating drum forming a support for the material to be turned, a second drum rotating with the first named drum, smoothing fingers circumferentially arranged about said second drum, and operable to gradually turn and press an edge of said material, a cam for operating said lingers, cooperating cutting elements for trimming said edge after it is turned, a casing for said lingers having an opening therein through Which said cam projects, and a canal connected to said casing for receiving material of concave form.

In testimony whereof I have atlizied my signature.

MAX KOPPE. 

